Jamesie O'Connor
GAA Expert & Columnist
Jamesie O'Connor: Kilkenny primed for All-Ireland tilt as Limerick look for history
Jamesie O'Connor looks at where the All-Ireland hurling final will be won and lost. Watch Kilkenny vs Limerick in the All-Ireland SHC final live on Sky Sports Arena from 2:30pm Sunday.
Last Updated: 15/07/22 7:49pm
Limerick are raring for a crack at Kilkenny to gain revenge for 2019.
But as much as that, the Cats are yearning for a crack at the Treaty.
You have to earn Kilkenny's respect in hurling, and that means beating them in a big game in Croke Park.
Granted, Limerick prevailed when the sides met in the 2018 All-Ireland quarter-final, but they have not beaten them in HQ.
Talking to Kilkenny people this year, I know they can't wait to take on the All-Ireland champions.
Facing Brian Cody's side concentrates Limerick minds. The players want to set the record straight after that 2019 defeat.
In terms of this team's legacy, to win the three-in-a-row, to beat Kilkenny in the final, what better way to do it? And all that is in the mix.
So players and managers will use whatever motivation they can find. John Kiely will be referencing 2019, and that Kilkenny were in their faces and ruffled their feathers right from the off that day. I think they will be ready for the same thing on Sunday.
Limerick will use it as fuel. It's missing from their CV that they haven't beaten Kilkenny in Croke Park.
If you're a Kilkenny player, you're duty-bound to protect the legacy of the great four-in-a-row team. If Limerick win four in five years, they will be mentioned in the same breath as that great black and amber side.
How to stop Limerick?
The Kilkenny brains trust will have looked at the Galway match, the two Clare matches, the Tipperary match, the Waterford match.
The Banner man-marked Gearoid Hegarty and Tom Morrissey, and the Tribesmen did the same. When those two guys aren't firing and aren't given the freedom of the pitch, Limerick aren't as dominant as they were in previous years.
Maybe that is because the two lads aren't playing at the level they were in 2020 and 2021.
I cannot see Kilkenny playing zonally. They will assign players to the Treaty's wing forwards.
Having said that, Hegarty and Morrissey still combined for the goal against Clare. They still have work-rate and unseen good things that they do around the field. But that's certainly one area Kilkenny will look at.
Another thing, when Aaron Gillane gets that quality ball in front of him, he's almost unmarkable. A big part of it is making sure that you do your level best to wreck the level of quality ball going in, that the Limerick defenders don't have time to look up, wait for the forward to make his move, and then put it into space.
That's in Kilkenny's DNA anyway. Huge work-rate is automatic to these guys, Cody wouldn't accept anything else.
As Kilkenny proved back to 2019, if you match Limerick's intensity, physicality and don't give them time to tee up their inside forwards, then they're not the team that dominated in 2020 and 2021.
Will Cody keep faith with the same team?
Kilkenny used the four-week break really well.
Historically, they haven't gone after challenge matches. They do their business in-house, those training matches in Nowlan Park where you get the chance to see who's going well. And who's in form.
He shuffled the deck frequently in Leinster, but I think he will go with the same team that beat Clare.
What Kilkenny player from the last day would you drop? So many players played well, and justified the faith Cody put in them.
Can Limerick win three-in-a-row?
Is the finish line going to come in time for Limerick? They're certainly not as clear from the pack as they appeared to be over the past two years.
Some guys have struggled to hit the same heights this year - Kyle Hayes, Tom Morrissey, Gearoid Hegarty. Obviously, they haven't had Cian Lynch available. But teams have thrown the kitchen sink against them, and the Treaty have come up trumps.
I still think there is a big performance in them. And Kilkenny might bring it out of them.
If Limerick play at their best and Kilkenny play at their best, Limerick win.
We've had all this talk about Kilkenny wanting Limerick. Be careful what you wish for. Limerick won't have forgotten 2019, and I think they'll be prepared for whatever avalanche Kilkenny throw at them.
Limerick have defensively had the answers. They haven't conceded too many goals. And I think the Treaty will find a way to get it done.
Watch Kilkenny vs Limerick in the All-Ireland SHC final live on Sky Sports Arena from 2:30pm Sunday.
